School Entrance Age:

Primary school - Age 5

Duration and Official Ages for School Cycle:

Primary : 5 years - Ages 5 - 9

Lower secondary : 4 years - Ages 10 - 13

Upper secondary : 4 years - Ages 14 - 17

Academic Calendar:

Starting month : January

Ending month : December

In Sri Lanka, the academic year begins in January and ends in December, and the official primary school entrance age is 5. The system is structured so that the primary school cycle lasts 5 years, lower

secondary lasts 4 years, and upper secondary lasts 4 years. Sri Lanka has a total of 4,342,000 pupils enrolled in primary and secondary education. Of these pupils, about 1,752,000 (40%) are enrolled in

primary education.

SCHOOL PARTICIPATION AND EFFICIENCY

The percentage of out of school children in a country shows what proportion of children are not currently participating in the education system and who are, therefore, missing out on the benefits of

school. In Sri Lanka, 6% of children of official primary school ages are out of school as shown in Figure 4, which also considers the proportion of children out of school by different characteristics

wherever data is available. For example, Figure 4 shows that approximately 6% of boys of primary school age are out of school compared to 6% of girls of the same age.

OVERVIEW

Region: South Asia

Income Group: Lower Middle IncomeSource for region and income groupings: World Bank 2014

Sri Lanka

National Education Profile

2014 Update

Primary1,752

Lower Secondary

1,318

Upper Secondary

1,272

Data Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics 2012

FIG 2. NUMBER OF PUPILS BY SCHOOL LEVEL(IN 1000S)

6 6#N/A #N/A #N/A #N/A

6

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Male Female Urban Rural Richest Quintile

Poorest Quintile

Total

Gender Urbanicity Income Total

% o

f C

hild

ren

Ou

t o

f Sc

ho

ol

Data source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) 2012

FIG 4. PERCENTAGE OF CHILDREN OF PRIMARY SCHOOL AGE OUT OF SCHOOL

FIG 3. EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT, YOUTH AGES 15-24

no data

FIG 1. EDUCATION SYSTEM

Data source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics

#N/A #N/A #N/A #N/A #N/A #N/A #N/A0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Male Female Urban Rural Richest Quintile

Poorest Quintile

Total

Gender Urbanicity Income Total

% o

f C

hild

ren

Ou

t o

f Sc

ho

ol

FIG 5. PERCENTAGE OF CHILDREN OF SECONDARY SCHOOL AGE OUT OF SCHOOL

no data

Figures 6 and 7 look at indicators of participation, completion, and progression in the education system. Figure 6 displays gross indicators (which include under- and over-age students) and net indicators

(which include only on-time students of official school age) for student intake, participation, and flows. In Sri Lanka, the gross enrollment rate in primary education is 98% for both girls and boys

combined. This increases to 99% in lower secondary, with a student transition rate to secondary school of 102%. In Sri Lanka, the primary net enrollment rate is 94% and the primary completion rate is

97%. Both of these indicators provide a sense of the progress a country is making towards universal primary education -- a key UN Millenium Development Goal -- and, for Sri Lanka, suggest that the

country has yet to achieve universal primary education. Figure 7 displays the repetition rate in primary education, showing the specific grades in which students are more likely to repeat. It suggests that

of the first 5 grades of primary in Sri Lanka, students are more likely to repeat grade 5. The repetition rate in grade 5 is 0.9% (for both males and females), which is 0.1 points higher than the average

repetition rate across primary grades of 0.8%.

LEARNING

This section provides information on indicators of learning, which lend insight into the

quality of educational provision. In this profile, learning is measured through literacy

rates, which are important because literacy is a foundational skill needed to attain

higher levels of learning, and national performance on learning assessments. Figure 8

demonstrates where Sri Lanka stands in comparison to other low and middle income

countries in access to education, measured as the primary school net enrollment rate,

and youth literacy. Compared to other countries, Sri Lanka ranks at the 65 percentile in

access and at the 63 percentile in learning. Figure 9 compares youth and adult literacy

rates and shows that, in Sri Lanka, the literacy rate is 98% among the youth population;

this is higher than the average youth literacy rate in other lower middle income

countries.

25

50

75

100

25 50 75 100

Other countries

Sri Lanka

Lite

racy

(Yo

uth

)

Access(Primary NER)

33rd percentile

33rd percentile

66 th percentile

66 th percentile

Data source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) (see Data Table for year)

FIG 8. COMPARISON OF ACCESS AND LITERACY

98

93

92

84

99

90

92

79

0 20 40 60 80 100

age 15-24

age 15+

age 15-24

age 15+

Sri L

anka

Low

er M

idd

le In

com

eco

un

trie

s (m

edia

n)

%

Male

Female

Data source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) (see Data Table for year)

Male

Female

FIG 9. LITERACY RATE AMONG YOUTH AND ADULT POPULATION

9893

9994 97 100 99

949893

9894 97

103100

105

0.0

20.0

40.0

60.0

80.0

100.0

120.0

Gross Intake Net Intake GrossEnrollment

Net Enrollment Completion Transition tolower

secondary

GrossEnrollment

GrossEnrollment

Primary LowerSecondary

UpperSecondary

% Male Female

Data sources: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), EPDC calculation based on UIS data (see Data Table for year)

Male Female

FIG 6. STUDENT INTAKE AND FLOW FROM PRIMARY TO SECONDARY SCHOOLS

0.8 0.80.9

1.01.0

0.70.7 0.7

0.8 0.8

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

1.2

Prim G1 Prim G2 Prim G3 Prim G4 Prim G5

%

male by grade female by grade

male primary female primary

Data source: EPDC calculation based on UIS data (see Data Table for year)

FIG 7. STUDENT REPETITION BY GRADE AND LEVEL IN PRIMARY SCHOOL

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka

Reading Mathematics

Perc

ent

of

Stu

den

ts

At the highestperformancebenchmark

Below the lowestperformancebenchmark

FIG 10. PERFORMANCE ON LEARNING ASSESSMENTS

no data no data

KEY

INDICATOR VALUE YEAR DATA SOURCE90 2010 47% 85% 58% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)93 2010 50% 85% 60% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)99 2010 55% 85% 65% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)98 2010 48% 85% 58% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)98 2012 27% 28% 27% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)98 2012 27% 28% 24% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)93 2006 91% 80% 96% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)93 2006 90% 80% 94% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)98 2012 27% 42% 29% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)99 2012 21% 0% 20% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

100 2012 67% 85% 76% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)99 2012 60% 85% 75% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

105 2012 84% 100% 93% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)94 2012 75% 100% 92% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)94 2012 56% 66% 67% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)94 2012 54% 66% 65% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)87 2011 72% 100% 90% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)83 2011 65% 100% 84% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)1 2011 75% 100% 82% Education Policy and Data Center (EPDC)*1 2011 78% 100% 83% Education Policy and Data Center (EPDC)*-1 2011 92% 100% 94% Education Policy and Data Center (EPDC)*1 2011 68% 84% 77% Education Policy and Data Center (EPDC)*

104 2011 93% 83% 94% Education Policy and Data Center (EPDC)*289 2011 83% 100% 83% Education Policy and Data Center (EPDC)*97 2012 54% 50% 62% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)97 2012 51% 66% 61% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

103 2011 96% 100% 98% Education Policy and Data Center (EPDC)*100 2011 83% 100% 94% Education Policy and Data Center (EPDC)*24 2012 39% 72% 55% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)17 2012 48% 86% 67% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)18 2012 32% 72% 44% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)5 2012 2% 0% 2% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)7 2012 4% 0% 5% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

6 2012 45% 86% 56% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

6 2012 43% 86% 54% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

6 2012 45% 86% 58% UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

ˠ Lower data values indicate better performance on these indicators

EDUCATION EXPENDITURE

Gross enrollment rate, Upper Secondary, FemaleGross enrollment rate, Upper Secondary, MaleNet enrollment rate, Primary, FemaleNet enrollment rate, Primary, MaleNet enrollment rate, Secondary, Female

Low and

Middle

Income‡

Figures 11 and 12 compare Sri Lanka's per pupil expenditure (PPE) and pupil teacher ratio (PTR), where data is available, to those of other lower middle income countries. PPE indicates a country's

commitment to education at each school level. In Sri Lanka, PPE in primary education as a percentage of GDP per capita is 5%, lower than the median PPE in primary for lower middle income countries,

which is 14%. In Sri Lanka, the PPE in primary is lower than the PPE in secondary. PTR is a proxy learning quality and resource availability indicator. In Sri Lanka, the PTR in primary education is 24.4,

meaning that on average there is one teacher for every 24.4 primary school students. This is lower than the median PTR in primary for lower middle income countries, which is 29. In Sri Lanka, the PTR in

primary is higher than the PTR in secondary.

All

CountriesSouth Asia

PERCENTILE RANK

RELATIVE TO…

Literacy rate, 15+, FemaleLiteracy rate, 15+, MaleLiteracy rate, 15-24, FemaleLiteracy rate, 15-24, MaleGross intake rate, Primary, FemaleGross intake rate, Primary, MaleNet intake rate, Primary, FemaleNet intake rate, Primary, MaleGross enrollment rate, Primary, FemaleGross enrollment rate, Primary, MaleGross enrollment rate, Lower Secondary, FemaleGross enrollment rate, Lower Secondary, Male

* EPDC calculation based on UIS data

Public education expenditure per pupil (% of GDP per capita), Secondary

Dropout rate, Primary, Femaleˠ

Percentage of children out of school, Primary, Femaleˠ Percentage of children out of school, Secondary, Femaleˠ Percentage of children out of school, Primary, Totalˠ Percentage of children out of school, Secondary, Totalˠ

‡ Includes World Bank classified low and middle income countries

Percentage of children out of school, Secondary, Urbanˠ Percentage of children out of school, Primary, Ruralˠ Percentage of children out of school, Secondary, Ruralˠ Percentage of children out of school, Primary, Maleˠ Percentage of children out of school, Secondary, Maleˠ

Completion rate, Primary, FemaleCompletion rate, Primary, Male

Survival rate, to Prim G5, Male

Transition rate, to Secondary, Female

Percentage of children out of school, Primary, Richest Quintileˠ

Percentage of children out of school, Primary, Poorest Quintileˠ Percentage of children out of school, Secondary, Poorest Quintileˠ

Pupil teacher ratio, Lower Secondaryˠ Pupil teacher ratio, Upper Secondaryˠ Public education expenditure per pupil (% of GDP per capita), Primary

Percentage of children out of school, Secondary, Richest Quintileˠ Percentage of children out of school, Primary, Urbanˠ

Pupil teacher ratio, Primaryˠ

DATA TABLE

Transition rate, to Secondary, Male

Net enrollment rate, Secondary, MaleRepetition rate, Primary, Femaleˠ Repetition rate, Primary, Maleˠ

Dropout rate, Primary, Maleˠ Survival rate, to Prim G5, Female

In this table, the values of different education indicators for Sri Lanka are compared to all countries, to South Asia, and to low and middle income countries. The percentile rank that is given indicates Sri

Lanka's standing relative to these country groups. A higher percentile rank indicates better relative performance than a lower percentile rank. Percentile rankings above 66% are considered high and

colored in green, rankings between 33% and 66% are considered average and colored in yellow, and rankings below 33% are considered low and colored in red. For example, the gross enrollment rate

for females in primary education in Sri Lanka is 98%. For this indicator, Sri Lanka ranks in the 27 percentile relative to all countries, meaning that 27% of countries have lower gross enrollment rates than

Sri Lanka. As another example, the survival rate to grade 5 of primary school for males in Sri Lanka is 289%, and Sri Lanka ranks in the 83 percentile relative to all countries, in the 100 percentile relative

to South Asia, and in the 83 percentile relative to low and middle income countries for this indicator.

29 21 19

24

1718

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Primary Lower Secondary Upper Secondary

Pu

pil

teac

her

rat

io (

PTR

)

Lower MiddleIncome countries(median)

Sri Lanka

Data source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) (see Data Table for year)

FIG 12. PUPIL TEACHER RATIO (PTR) BY SCHOOL LEVEL

14 16

5

7

02468

101214161820

Primary Secondary

% o

f G

DP

per

cap

ita

Lower MiddleIncome countries(median)

Sri Lanka

Data source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) (see Data Table for year)

FIG 11. PER PUPIL EXPENDITURE (PPE) BY SCHOOL LEVEL (% OF GDP PER CAPITA)

INDICATORS AND DEFINITIONS

Completion Rate

Dropout Rate

Educational Attainment

Gross Enrollment Rate (GER)

Gross Intake Ratio (GIR)

Literacy Rate

Net Enrollment Rate (NER)

Net Intake Rate (NIR)

Percentage of Children Out of School

Public Education Expenditure per Pupil (PPE)

Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR)

Repetition Rate

Survival Rate

Transition Rate

Both

Poorest Quintile

Richest Quintile

DATA SOURCES AND LEARNING ASSESSMENTS

Demographic and Health Survey (DHS)

Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS)

UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS)

Analysis Programme of the CONFEMEN Education Systems

(PASEC)*

Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS)*

Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS)*

Second Regional Comparative and Explanatory Study (SERCE)*

Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring

Educational Quality (SACMEQ)*

Highest Performance Benchmark*

Lowest Performance Benchmark*

* Learn more about assessment data and what competencies correspond with performance benchmarks at www.epdc.org/data-about-epdc-data/about-epdc-learning-outcomes-data.

The lowest test-specific performance or learning levels of an assessment. These benchmarks are different for each assessment

because each assessment uses different constructs, tools, and procedures. Additionally, assessments vary in the standards for

each learning achievement benchmark, the number of benchmarks according to which test-takers can be evaluated, and the

youth populations they test.

The highest level of education an individual has achieved.

Total number of pupils/Total education budget.

Proportion of children of a given age group who are not currently enrolled in any schooling.

GLOSSARY

The highest test-specific performance or learning levels of an assessment. These benchmarks are different for each assessment

because each assessment uses different constructs, tools, and procedures. Additionally, assessments vary in the standards for

each learning achievement benchmark, the number of benchmarks according to which test-takers can be evaluated, and the

youth populations they test.

Proportion of pupils from a cohort enrolled in a given grade at a given school-year who study in the same grade in the following

school-year.

Percentage of a cohort of pupils enrolled in the first grade level or cycle of education in a given school year who are expected to

survive through a certain grade regardless of repetition.

The number of pupils admitted to the first grade of a higher level of education in a given year, expressed as a percentage of the

number of pupils enrolled in the last grade of the lower level of education in the previous year.

The SACMEQ assessment is designed to assess student abilities in mathematics and reading English. SACMEQ reading and math

assessments have been carried out in countries in Anglophone East Africa in 1995, 2000, and 2007. SACMEQ is administered in

school to children in the 6th grade of formal school.

The SERCE assessment was administered in 16 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean by the Latin American Laboratory for

Assessment of the Quality of Education (LLECE) in 2006. SERCE was administered to children in the 3rd and 6th grades of formal

school. It measures student ability in the areas of reading, mathematics, and science.

Measures using "Both" in their title combine male and female rates.

Proportion of pupils who belong to the bottom 20% of a country's population, based on household wealth measured by an index

of household assets.

Proportion of pupils who belong to the top 20% of a country's population, based on household wealth measured by an index of

household assets.

The PIRLS reading assessment, which is carried out by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement

(IEA) is an assessment of reading comprehension skills. In most countries, PIRLS is administered in school to children in the 4th

grade of formal school, every five years since 2001. In a small number of countries, it may be administered at a different grade.

The TIMSS math assessment, which is carried out by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement

(IEA), assesses pupils knowledge and understanding of mathematical concepts. TIMMS has been administered to children in the

4th and 8th grades of formal schools every four years since 1995. In a small number of countries, it may be administered at

different grade levels.

PASEC has been administered in 13 countries in Francophone West Africa. PASEC is designed to assess student abilities in

mathematics and reading French. The program is managed by CONFEMEN (La Conférence des Ministres de l’Education des pays

ayant le français en partage) and has been in place since 1993. It is typically administered to students in 2nd and 5th grades.

Nationally-representative household surveys that provide data for a wide range of indicators in the areas of population, health,

and nutrition. They have large sample sizes (between 3,000 to 50,000 households) and are typically conducted about every 5 years

in developing countries. It is funded by USAID and implemented by ICF International.

Household surveys that produce internationally comparable estimates of a range of indicators in the areas of health, education,

child protection and HIV/AIDS.  It is developed by UNICEF to provide statistically rigorous data on the situation

of children and women. Since the mid-1990s, there has been 4 rounds of the MICS survey, with the latest in 2009-2011.

Statistical office of UNESCO and the primary UN depository for cross-nationally comparable statistics on education, science and

technology, culture, and communication covering more than 200 countries and territories. It was established in 1999 and collects

data directly from the national statistics agencies of its members.

Average nationally of: Total number of pupils/Total number of teachers. Rates may vary significantly throughout the country.

Total number of new entrants in the first grade of primary education, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the

population at the official primary school-entrance age.

New entrants in the first grade of primary education who are of the official primary school entrance age, expressed as a

percentage of the population of the same age.

Total enrollment in a specific level of education, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of the official school-age population

corresponding to the same level of education in a given school-year. Often higher than 100% because of repetition and overage

students.

The ability to read and write with understanding a simple statement related to one's daily life. Literacy often involves a continuum

of reading and writing skills.

Enrollment of the official age-group for a given level of education expressed as a percentage of the corresponding population.

Proportion of pupils from a cohort enrolled in a given grade at a given year who are no longer enrolled in the following school

year.

The total number of students completing (or graduating from) the final year of primary or secondary education, regardless of age,

expressed as a percentage of the population of the official primary or secondary graduation age.